The Executive Leadership Forum was created to serve as a venue for sharing practical business knowledge. Select leaders from the business community are invited to engage in a dialogue regarding their perspectives on leadership and the everyday challenges they face.

Our eighth guest to the Executive Leadership Forum is Mr. George W. Foyo, Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer of Baptist Health South Florida. In this role, he directs and manages major system-wide, corporate functions, including Human Resources, International Services, Construction, Government & Community Relations, the Baptist Health Foundation, and more.

Before joining Baptist Health, Mr. Foyo served as Market President for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida (BCBSF), now known as Florida Blue. Mr. Foyo was responsible for BCBSF business operations in eight South Florida counties, including Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach. Mr. Foyo was able to grow BCBSF’s business in the region by creating new opportunities in the marketing, sales and community relations divisions.

Prior to joining the Healthcare industry, he served as the President and CEO of the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce where his team delivered significant business and membership growth and implemented strategies that re-positioned the chamber to be a strong advocate for business in Florida and in Washington.

A veteran of international business, his distinguished international career includes serving in numerous executive-level positions such as the President of DIRECTV Latin America, President and Managing Director for AT&T’s Caribbean and Latin America Division, Executive Vice President of AT&T International, Managing Director and CEO of AT&T Microelectrónica de España and Europe, and Vice President of Sales for AT&T, among others.

Locally, Mr. Foyo serves as Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Coconut Grove Bank and was also recently named Co-chair of Miami-Dade County’s “One Community One Goal” initiative. He continues to participate in several Boards focused on education, social services and economic development initiatives, including the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce, the Cuban American National Council (past Chair), The Beacon Council (past Chair), the FIU School of Business, the Miami-Dade County Public Schools Superintendent’s Advisory Council and others. He is also past Chair of Big Brothers Big Sisters and the Dade Community Foundation (now The Miami Foundation).

Mr. Foyo has received many honors and accolades during his career, including: Outstanding Alumni, University of Illinois; Hispanic Engineer Hall of Fame, HENAAC; Executive of the Year, Madrid Chamber of Commerce; and Executive of the Year, Latin Chamber of Commerce of the United States.

Born in Havana, Cuba. He earned a B.S. in Engineering from the University of Illinois, Chicago and an M.S. in Engineering from Purdue University, Indiana. He is married to Luisa and together they have four children.

Baptist Health South Florida is the largest, most preferred, not-for-profit healthcare organization in the region. Baptist Health is composed of seven hospitals and 30 outpatient locations spanning throughout Miami-Dade, Broward and Monroe counties. With a workforce of more than 15,000 employees, it is South Florida’s largest private employer. Learn more about how Baptist Health South Florida delivers top healthcare services to the community by visiting: www.baptisthealth.net.